A wary tingle replaced stage fright as the reason for her damp palms. “Close enough to what?”
Before anyone responded, a chipper production assistant buzzed in, wearing a headset and clasping an electronic tablet. “My name’s Justine. On behalf of Tess Hartley, I’d like to welcome all of you to Let’s Talk. We’re going to open with the kids on camera. If you’d head that way, please...” She motioned the younger group toward the door. “I’ll come back for the parents shortly.”
Carly squeezed Annabel’s hand. The teenager’s excitement fizzed palpably between them like a carbonated cola.
“Good luck, Anna,” Carly whispered. “Please don’t be mad,” she added before slipping away.
Don’t be mad? That simple plea put Annabel’s parental alarm system on full alert. She was all too familiar with the way the high-spirited girl’s best intentions frequently misfired. “Mad about what?”
From the doorway, Carly flashed a mischievous smile and escaped with the other teenagers. Except for the gurgle of an espresso machine in the corner, the room swirled with awkward silence. Annabel thought of all the editing waiting for her back at the production studio and longed for the safety of her ordinary routine.
A military-type with ramrod-straight posture and square jaw stopped at the end of the sofa. “When you came in,” he said, “I wasn’t sure if you were a parent or one of the kids.”
The flattery tickled Annabel. Only fourteen years older than Carly, people occasionally guessed they were sisters. But she couldn’t imagine anyone mistaking her for a teenager. Maybe the kick-ass outfit Carly chose for her had shaved off some years.
“Stepparent.” She glanced around the room, trying to interpret the spike in atmosphere. “Aren’t we all?
A couple of “Not me’s” mingled with one “I am.”
“What’s going on here?” she asked GI Joe.
He nodded toward a monitor where the smiling face of Cincinnati’s answer to Oprah filled the screen. “Watch and learn.”
Tess Hartley let her lively theme song and the audience’s applause fade away before she introduced the day’s episode. “Today on Let’s Talk, we’re going to meet a group of caring teens who are concerned about their single parents.”
Concerned! The word bounced around inside Annabel’s head like a loose basketball on a gym floor. Why would Carly be concerned about her? Discomfort plummeted into downright dread.
“Through death, divorce, or abandonment,” Tess continued, “all of these high-school seniors live in single-parent households. As they prepare to leave home for the first time, they worry about their parents’ lonely futures. Isn’t that sweet?”
Tess’s audience agreed with enthusiastic applause, but Annabel didn’t think sweet accurately described it. In the green room, the knowing nods of some parents and the shocked expressions of others who’d been duped confirmed her assessment.
“Please, join me while they—” Tess paused and gestured for the studio audience to join in the recitation of the show’s well-known tag line “—tell Tess about it.”
Justine reappeared in the green room, buzzing along just as hyper and efficient as before. But now, she looked more sheepish than capable. “In case you haven’t figured it out, some of you are here under false pretenses. There’s nothing illegal or unethical going on. The kids are really excited. But if any of you prefer not to participate, you need to let me know now—before we get too far into the taping.”
Well, that gave them plenty of leeway. Annabel swallowed hard and found her voice. “What exactly have they gotten us into? A televised ambush?”
“They’re playing matchmaker,” the anorexic woman said, practically rubbing her hands together in anticipation. “I can’t wait to see who I get fixed up with.”
“Matchmaker?” Annabel picked up her purse, ready to head for the door.
“That’s right,” Justine confirmed. “Last week, all of them interviewed potential partners from a pool of prescreened, preapproved applicants. They each handpicked someone for their single parent to go out with on one or two dates arranged by and recorded for a future episode of Let’s Talk. Their choices are here to meet you today.”
“What kind of dates?” Annabel asked.
“Whatever you and your arranged partner want. You’ll each get to name your perfect evening, and the show will foot the bills—within reason. No flying to New York or Paris, but anything local will be fine.”
“I plan on going to The Precinct,” GI Joe chimed in. Although the steakhouse wouldn’t be Annabel’s choice, a flurry of laughter and hoots of agreement followed the mention of one of Cincinnati’s most expensive restaurants.
“You can decide on your destinations later.” Justine’s gaze flicked to the clock on the wall and then settled on the monitor. “But you’ll need to make up your minds quickly about appearing.”
Out in the studio, the camera panned the line of fledgling matchmakers. Just as Annabel opened her mouth to refuse, the camera zeroed in on Carly and focused on her blonde good looks. In that moment, Annabel forgot the trick the girl had played and felt a thrill of pride at her stepdaughter’s composure. She glowed as Carly spilled the beans about Annabel.
“She’s my stepmom. My dad got custody of me when my biological mother left us. He married Annabel when I was nine, and after he died three years ago, I stayed with her. My birth mom is awesome in a fairy godmother kind of way, but she’s not very good with, um, details.” A smile curled the corners of Carly’s mouth. “Annabel’s the one who’s always tucked me in, taken me to the dentist, soccer games and piano recitals. You know, all that Mom-and-responsibility stuff.”
“Does she work outside the home?” Tess asked.
“Oh, yeah, she’s a documentary editor for a local production company. A project she worked on is nominated for some big award.” Carly paused before confiding, “She’s so proud that I plan to go to medical school eventually, but except for me, her work’s all she’s got. I’m afraid she’ll use it as an excuse not to get a real life after I leave for college next fall.”
Not true! Annabel had lots of other things and people in her life. Didn’t she? Hmmm, maybe not.
She cringed as the little blabbermouth ratted her out to the entire tri-state area. Maybe if she’d informed Carly about her plans for the future, this fiasco could have been avoided.
Truthfully, after all the responsibilities she’d handled over the years, Annabel yearned for an exciting, carefree life of her own.
She loved her stepdaughter and enjoyed her company, but Annabel looked forward to the graduating teen’s departure with more anticipation than dread. As soon as Carly left for Ohio State, Annabel planned to cut loose and make her own dreams come true.
Some of her plans involved work goals, sure, but they also included increasing her social life. All right, make that developing a social life. With an all-new, daring, and spontaneous attitude, she wanted to flit off to a weekend in Belize… go skydiving… date guys with tattoos.
Since she didn’t want Carly feeling as if Annabel itched to get rid of her, she hadn’t mentioned any of her secret desires to her stepdaughter. But now Annabel could see the advantages of opening up a bit more. She’d remedy that issue immediately after today’s show.
Carly’s sweet gesture revealed a misguided need to repay Annabel for her love, and Annabel would never hurt the girl’s feelings by refusing the gesture. She considered the possibility of easing herself into her new ready-for-anything persona with two vetted, chaperoned, on-camera dates. How bad could they be?
Smothering a sense of impending doom, she summoned her courage long enough to sign the release forms Justine handed to her. Within moments, she found herself taking a deep breath and stepping center stage. Her eyes adjusted to the glaring lights while she waited for her cue.